Yesterday, at the Paducah City Commission meeting, Paducah Commissioner Richard Abraham brought up a community debate about the statue of Confederate Gen. Lloyd Tilghman on Fountain Avenue.

Multiple petitions are going around the city, while some are all for the removal of the statue, some want to keep the statue standing.

Abraham recently met up with a group of African Americans to discuss other monuments. He then a prepared statement:

“As humans, we tend to gravitate towards the easy fix. Tearing down a statue, that should serve as an encouragement and motivation as to how far we have come as a nation, will not fix any of these issues. Fixing the woes of our country will be only accomplished by the same solution for all of its citizens, personal responsibility.”

For more information on the five Paducah petitions, visit change.org.